spotify

Meet like-minded music fans with Moosify

Moosify promises to help you "meet new people through music and places," without the actual need to go to any places to listen to music. Available as a Spotify app or for iPhone or for Android, Moosify lets you connect with people with similar tastes in music or near your vicinity. To get a sense of how the app works, I tried out Moosify on Spotify and my iPhone.

On Spotify, the app loads and forces you to log in via Facebook. After logging in, you are greeted with a grid of Moosify users. Clicking the play button … Read more

How Netflix, HBO, ESPN punish international travelers

I am writing this post sitting in New Delhi, India, as I wind up a trip that included several social-media talks to mark the centennial of Columbia Journalism School.

Thanks to apps like Apple's FaceTime and the free texting-and-calling service Viber, I was able to connect in better ways with my wife and kids than on any international trip I've ever been on.

But I also was deeply disappointed by one aspect of technology on this trip. And it was the fact that some services that I use regularly in the U.S. don't work overseas.

Here'… Read more

Spotify kills new download purchases in Europe

Spotify is no longer allowing new download purchases through its service in Europe.

The company posted an FAQ to its U.K. site recently, saying that it is "no longer supporting new download purchases on Spotify." The music service didn't provide further details, but noted that users can still use downloads that were already purchased. Music that was already downloaded but not yet used is not affected by the change.

In a statement to CNET, a Spotify spokesperson confirmed it stopped the purchase option, but said that "we're not ruling out their return." Spotify … Read more

Spotify's 2012 dominated by Gotye, Rihanna

Spotify has rounded up its 2012, and revealed that Gotye, Rihanna, and David Guetta had huge years on its service.

According to Spotify, the most popular track this year was Gotye's "Somebody That I Used to Know" both in the U.S. and worldwide. Fun's "We Are Young" and Carly Rae Jepsen's "Call Me Maybe" rounded out the top three most popular songs in the U.S. this year.

Spotify then turned its attention to artists, and discovered that Rihanna was the most popular female artist this year. David Guetta took … Read more

Spotify competitor Deezer sets sights on U.S.

Deezer, a Spotify competitor operating internationally, has set its sights on the U.S.

Speaking to the Wall Street Journal in an interview published today, Deezer CEO Axel Dauchez said that his company is "looking for a partner in the U.S." that would allow it to gain access to a "significant volume of subscribers."

It's not clear what Dauchez is looking for in a partner in the U.S.

Deezer's service is available in 160 countries. The company offers two free hours of ad-supported music streaming, but also has monthly plans ranging in … Read more

Roku adds Spotify, Vevo to its streamed channel offerings

Roku is getting its groove on to deliver music streaming service Spotify and music video service Vevo to living room TVs via its set-top boxes.

Available only to paying Spotify subscribers on select Roku devices, the new music streaming offering allows users to listen to music and manage playlists. However, Spotify says new customers can try the premium subscription free of charge for 30 days.

"Spotify wants to make all of the world's music available for people to enjoy whenever and wherever they are," Pascal de Mul, global head of hardware partnerships at Spotify, said in a … Read more

Spotify comes to TiVo

Spotify will now be available on TiVo Premiere, giving Spotify's premium subscribers access to its catalog of over 20 million songs via the set-top box.

TiVo users can sign in with an existing Spotify Premium account ($9.99/month) to stream music through their home theater system (or TV), as well as browse playlists, albums and artists, and search using the TiVo remote control.

TiVo is one of the first AV devices -- not including media streamers like Sonos, Boxee, and the WD TV Live -- to announce Spotify support. Samsung TVs announced Spotify support in October, but presently … Read more

Metallica joins Spotify, buries the hatchet with Sean Parker

NEW YORK--Lars Ulrich of Metallica and Sean Parker, one of the founders of file-sharing service Napster, made peace today.

In an unlikely detente, the two men joined Daniel Ek, CEO of Spotify, on stage during the streaming music service's press event here, more than a decade since their famous feud when Ulrich tried to get Napster shut down. More recently, it turns out that Ulrich and Parker share a love of Spotify and Ulrich announced that Metallica is now offering its catalog on the service.

Besides offering testimonials about how much they enjoy using Spotify, the two shared their … Read more

Spotify tops 1 million paid U.S. subscribers in one year

NEW YORK -- Spotify now has 5 million paid subscribers around the world, a number that includes 1 million U.S. customers, the company said today. It has 20 million active users worldwide, said CEO Daniel Ek.

At a press event here, Ek said that the company hit 1 million U.S. paid subscribers in a year when it took others a decade to accumulate that amount. That seemed like a thinly veiled shot at Rhapsody, one of the oldest music subscription services.

Among the news items from the event: Metallica announced that all its music is now available on Spotify.… Read more